Just you and I
by deLattre
Summary: For once, a date between Nigel and Lizzie goes well.


The brown-haired girl giggles as she probes her opponent's defenses.

"5-1! Watch out Nigie! You're falling behind!"

"Only because I've been letting you win, Lizzie! Now you're going to see what I can _really_ do."

It's 10:00 P.M. on a Friday. In the arcade section of Hap-Happy Land, Nigel and Lizzie are engaged in an intense game of air hockey.

"Then let's see you try to stop this!", replies Lizzie. So saying, she sends the puck ricocheting to the opposite goal.

Usually, their dates follow a dreary pattern: Nigel sneaking off roughly once a minute on KND business, Lizzie progressively getting fed up with his behavior, and him falling down on his knees and pleading for forgiveness at the date's end. But not this time. This time, things have gone almost perfectly. The reason is simple: the KND villains are on vacation for the weekend. There are no artefacts to retrieve, no civilians to rescue. Turns out that even evil adults are familiar with the concept of vacation. Nigel found this hard to believe. However, the information came from the Supreme Leader herself, so it had to be true.

And so the main source of friction in Nigel and Lizzie's relationship has vanished for the night.

Nigel tries to monitor the puck's progress as it bounces left and right. He fails-the object slips past his guard and falls into the goal, producing a clanging sound that he's starting to know well.

"Blast!" he fumes. "All right, you won't catch me off guard again." Nigel tries to fight fire with fire, sending the puck ricocheting to the other side. However, Lizzie blocks the plastic circle and responds in kind. They begin hitting the puck against the walls faster and faster. It all comes down to which child possessed the better reflexes, and that, of course, is Lizzie.

Clang!

"7-1, Nigel!"

Time for a change of plans, decides Nigel. he places his mallet at the center of the slot, hoping it will prove a sufficient obstacle. Then he sends the puck to his girlfriend's side, giving her the initiative. Carefully, Lizzie angles the puck and fires. Her aim is true: the piece of plastic passes through the right-hand gap left by Nigel's mallet.

Clang!

"Oh come on!" shouts Nigel. At this point, he becomes recklessly aggressive. He pushes forward his body to the one-third line and launches a series of fast attacks on Lizzie. One of them actually makes it past her defenses.

"Aha! I've got the right strategy now."

Her counterattack sails right past his extended arms. Clang!

Frustrated, he slams the puck down the playing surface. Since it slips forward a bit too much, he pushes it back. Unfortunately he pushes too hard, and before he can stop the puck, it falls into his own goal.

Clang!

Lizzie giggles again. "I win! And you know what that means, Nigel!"

Nigel groans. "I know, I know. We get our pictures taken at the photo booth."

"Well come on then, let's go!"

* * *

The carnival's photo booth is modern and tasteful, although Nigel insists it's a brainwashing device. Photos are taken against a wall, specifically a vast, brightly-colored picture of of the amusement park. The photographer leads and Lizzie to the right position, then goes into a blue photo-taking booth.

"Okay, we're ready to go!" he shouts. "Now remember, face the camera and smile." A second later the man re-emerges. "Uh, young man", he told Nigel, "you're facing the wrong way!"

The operative is looking completely to the side. He grudgingly turns his head in the correct direction. However, as the photographer retreats to the booth, he suddenly put his right hand in front of his face.

The adult chuckles. "Kid, I can't see your face if your hand is covering it."

Lizzie gives him a pleading look. "Come on, Nigel, don't cover your face! You promised we'd get some pictures taken!"

"Ughh! Okay, fine. Let's get this over with." He lowers his hand, and the photo shoot proceeds without further interruptions.

"Now was that so hard?" says Lizzie as they emerge from the building.

"I'm sorry, Lizzie, but photo-shoots just aren't for me!" protests Nigel. "I can't do this mushy stuff."

"Sure you can, Nigie. You just did!" To prove her point, she hands him the three pictures they'd taken.

Nigel looks them over. "Hey, they're not actually too bad." And indeed, he appeared much more photogenic than usual. He isn't smiling in the first two shots, but is completely inside the three pictures and facing the right way.

As they meander through the amusement park, Lizzie is filled with elation. Despite the difficulties of the photo shoot, she's never seen Nigel so interested in spending time with her. Since they'd entered Hap-Happy Land, three hours ago, he hasn't left her side once!And yet she can't help wondering why he had suddenly changed his behavior tonight. What if next time he goes back to his old ways? She wants to ask him, but decids to play it safe. Right now, the last thing Lizzie wants is to remind her Nigel of the Kids Next Door.

She sighs wistfully. "Oh, Nigie, this is the kind of date I've always dreamed of!"

"I have to admit, this is pretty fun." concedes Nigel shily.

Truth be told, he doesn't like running off to fight villains every time Lizzie had her back turned. But he doesn't have a choice. His duties to the Kids Next Door can't be neglected-not even for his girlfriend.

"We've done pretty much everything in the park." he remarks affably. "So what do you want to do now?"

"Oh, I know! How about we go to your house and watch the stars?"

"Hey, Numbuh One, how's the mission going?!" interrupts a familiar voice behind him.

Nigel whirls around. Abby, Wally, Kuki, and Hoagie are standing there, sniggering.

"What are you guys doing here?" he inquires crossly.

"Numba Five says she overheard you talking to Lizzie on the phone." says Hoagie. "Apparently you were planning a _special mission_ at the carnival."

"All right, fine." grumbles Nigel, throwing an angry glance at Abby. "I didn't go on a mission, I went on a date. Now if you'll excuse me, we'll be leaving. He beckons to his girlfriend. "Come on, Lizzie, let's go get some ice-cream."

Sector V's operative and Lizzie walk away, ignoring Hoagie and Wally's chants of "Nigel and Lizzie, sitting in a tree!, k-i-s-s-i-n-g!"

Nigel doesn't notice that Lizzie is keen to leave. Although she finds it fun to see Nigel's friends tease him, she really doesn't feel comfortable hanging out the, especially Hoagie and Wally. They tend to be grumpy and sarcastic in her presence. No doubt it's because of the boyfriend helmet incident, but how long can they stay mad at her?

True, he came very close to ending the relationship after the helmet-induced amnesia wore off. For the first and only time, she was the one begging for forgiveness. Her friends were amazed that Nigel forgave her. But the point is, he did forgive her. Why can't they do the same?

Maybe they consider her too bossy. She recalls Abby saying something to that effect once. But it's not really her fault. In third grade, before she'd met Nigel, most girls at school said that no boy would ever like her. As a result, she fears the possibility that Nigel might...cheat on her. And unfortunately, people mistake her paranoia for bossiness.

"What kind of ice cream do you want?" Nigel asks.

"Same as always, of course. Pistachio!"

* * *

After getting their ice cream, they start to walk back home. But it's a long way from Hap-Happy Land to Nigel's house. So they decide to fly, with Lizzie clinging to Nigel. Five minutes later, they touch down on the lawn behind the house and lie down on their backs, side by side.

It's a warm, starry evening, as September nights are wont to be. A light breeze is blowing, and the grass under their necks feels soft and cool. Watching the vast expanse of silver dots in the sky, they feel as if their world is completely free of problems.

Nigel becomes aware that her hand is wrapped around his. Of course the gesture isn't new-she holds his hand all the time-but he's never noticed how soothing and warm her skin feels. Not normal warm, either, but deeper, more satisfying.

"Nigel?" asks Lizzie thoughtfully. "What do you think stars are made of?"

He turns his head towards her and removes his glasses. "I think they're really big, silver coins. But they have to be cleaned up sometimes. That's why you don't always see them shine."

"Really? I thought they were diamonds, not coins."

Nigel shakes his head. "No way. Diamonds are too expensive."

"Coins can be expensive too." argues Lizzie.

"Yes, but...they could be coins with silver painted on them," replies the British boy.

"Well in that case, the diamonds could be fake too!"

They remain on the lawn well into the night, bantering and sharing thoughts. And when they decide to go to bed, around 12:30 A.M., Nigel finds himself genuinely hoping that Labor Day comes around next weekend. Because if there's one thing he loves more than serving the Kids Next Door, it's spending time with Lizzie


End file.
